Awaken
by nayru moon
Summary: With the forces of darkness on their trail, and no hero left to save them, will Riku and Sora save each other? (Shounen-ai, some plot spoilers.) COMPLETE (Read and review)
1. Sounds

Awaken

Disclaimer: The crappy excuse for a fanfiction you see below? All mine. The characters? Not mine at all. The game, Kingdom Hearts? I own a copy, but the game is not mine._ Please_; if you are the type of person who doesn't like yaoi/shounen-ai, and the thought of two boys kissing disgusts you, do not flame me over it. If you think that the idea sucks, go ahead, by all means, flame away. Forgive the terrible formatting; FFN has decided that a part of grammar (tabs) in writing is gone for Goddess-knows-what reason, and it just looks terrible to me. This fic is meant to start right after the end of Kingdom Hearts, but before the sequel (despite me having NO clue what's happening in it). THIS MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS, and you will have had to played the game through to really understand it. End the disclaimer, start the fic.

Chapter 1: Sounds

It was dark. Dark, and frigid. There were only tiny pinprick of lights around him and his cloaked companion. The light glowing from the Heartless' eyes was just enough to let him see his companion, blankly staring at him from about five feet away. All that held the little beasts off was a shield the cloaked man had set up, creating a clean space about one hundred square feet, but around the shielded walls, infinite amounts of the creatures pressed against the wall. There was no way to leave, nobody could enter, and the past week had been spent in near silence, as the Heartless rustled around them. He had no intention of talking to this man. He jumped slightly, as the cloaked man reached into his cloak, pulled out something, and tossed it towards him.

"The hell is this?" Riku picked it up.

"A journal." The other answered. "We're gonna be in here for a while, you might as well have somethin' to do." Riku blinked at King Mickey's astonishing gift.

"Did you know this was going to happen, or something?" Riku asked quietly. His voice was grated and raspy from not speaking in several days.

"Well, I keep stuff like that around. I figured I'd use it if I got imprisoned, but, seeing as I've got to hold these creatures off until one of us figures out a way out, I think you'll be using it more than me."

"I'd help, if you'd just give me something to-"

"And I'd trust you with a weapon? You almost killed Sora. How do I know how much of Ansem is left in you?" Mickey rose an eyebrow. Riku stared at his feet.

There was a minute of silence. "... You're acting like I had a choice. I had to save Kairi." Riku finally growled, turning away from Mickey angrily.

More silence. Riku was really getting sick of it. He'd been locked up for only a week, yet he'd heard more quiet here than in his entire lifetime. He closed his eyes, and breathed meditatively for what seemed an eon. Slowly, he conjured sounds in his head to fill the void left by the quiet. He heard laughter from his memories. Laughter, and on his closed eyelids, the beautiful beaches of his home, figures running, almost dancing, in his head. Someone was laughing, they were so happy... "Sora?"

"It's not Kairi you were lookin' for, is it?" Riku jumped, his eyes snapping open, going from his bright, sweet, succulent memories back to the dank and emptiness his world was, at the sudden reply.

"Pardon?"

"Kairi, sure, you were lookin' for her... but that wasn't your big thing, was it? Sora didn't follow ya on the way out. Sora went his own way. You hated him for it, I bet. So angry, angry that he let you go... " Mickey's voice changed in Riku's head, morphing to sound like Sora.

"... you were just looking for me. You wanted to see me, had to see me, you were desperate to prove you were right. Who was right in the end, Riku?" From the dark cloak, glowed Sora's eyes for a second, clear, shimmering, and blue like the sky, before fading back to look like the dying black embers that were Mickey's eyes.

"... The one of us on the other side of the big, glass door." Riku sighed. "But Sora, you know I would have done anything to have had your choice, your opportunity... I held the key, and it felt so good.... it was still warm from your hands... your hands..." Riku shuddered, getting a flash in his head of Sora in stance in front of him, holding the wooden sword like an Excalibur, grinning eager for the rush of battle.

"Uhm, Riki, who are you talkin' to?" Sora's voice, which was just Riku's fantasy combined with Mickey in the dark.

"RIKU! Sora, has it been that long? I'm Riku! RIKU, your best friend!" Riku cried, jumping towards Mickey.

"Geez, okay, okay, Riku, sorry!" Mickey fell back, shocked by Riku's outburst. Riku stared at his hallucination of Sora, and saw him, crouched on the ground, prone, one hand supporting his body, the other defending himself with one hand. Riku gaped, thinking he'd knocked Sora down, just like he had before. Riku felt fire in the pit of him, taking in the memory. Sora's body... slender, childish, so perfect. He was lithe, cut, even girlish. Riku's heart emanated a strange warmth each time he thought of Sora. He noticed something different in Sora's eyes; the way an unnatural light hit them from nowhere.

"I'm... I'm sorry, Sora." Riku reached for Sora's hand, to pull him to his feet. He fell over; Sora wasn't there. Riku knew, somewhere inside, Sora wasn't there, and he would never be there, but the strange light compelled him to go on. "Sora, Sora! Please!" Sora was walking away. Riku jumped to his feet, running after Sora, and right into where the Heartless waited to swallow him up. Sora started running, looking back at Riku, still smiling. Riku heard the sounds of Sora laughing again. He smirked to himself; he could run faster than Sora, he knew it. He upped the ante, as the tiny demons swarmed his feet, swallowing the path behind him. Mickey finally noticed that Riku was running after his hallucination, and began to hop over the Heartless towards him.

"Riku, what the heck're you doing?! Come back! They'll eat ya alive!" Mickey tripped over his robes, and silently regretted wearing them for a moment, before continuing to run. "You're gonna lose your heart, and that's all you've got left!" He tripped again, flung off the Heartless that immediately pounced onto him, and stopped. "Your heart is all you've got.... and that memory of your friend." Riku could no longer hear Mickey. Those sounds had long faded, replaced by only the sounds of Sora and him br. He had to keep running after Sora. Sora was all he had left. The Heartless kept covering his footsteps, and he wouldn't stop. There was no more darkness, no more light. All there was in Riku's eyes was Sora running away.

Finally, the inevitable occurred, and the Heartless began to absorb Riku into their masses of emptiness, pulling him down like into quicksand. Riku got desperate, reaching towards Sora, finally grabbing his hand. To his surprise, it was warm. Sora looked down at him, as he sunk entirely under. Riku noticed Sora smile.

"Step one." Sora whispered. He knelt close to where Riku had sunk in, and pushed down on Riku's head, holding him down, forcing him deeper in.

"SORA!" Riku screamed. This was just about the stupidest thing he could do at that second, as he was submerged in an unfathomable depth of pure darkness. Needless to say, he got a mouthful of warm, sour, salty evil, and lost his breath. The image of Sora forcing him down deeper turned to total black as he drowned in what was his own misery.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	2. Book Of Dreams

Awaken

Disclaimer: See first chapter.

2: Book Of Dreams

It was still cold. A light wind rushed through the air around him, chilling him to the bone. Riku coughed slightly, and gasped weakly as he saw a Heartless crawling out of his mouth. It dropped off of him; off his head. He looked around, confused. It was entirely dark, except for tiny specks of great stars floating aimlessly around him, and an unnatural light coming from nowhere. He felt like he was hung upside down, seeing for lightyears down. There was no obvious floor, and no obvious ceiling. Riku covered his eyes; the view was dizzying. He was feeling sick, and worse than when he was just locked up with Mickey. He no longer had any idea where he was or where he was going. All he could think of was to think out loud.

"What did he mean by step one?" He sighed to himself. "What was he talking about? And why did he push me under?" He looked around, for any sign of anything familiar. "Hey, Sora!" He yelled. "SORA!" He felt himself choking again, and coughed up a tiny piece of Heartless. "Ugh.... SORA! What the hell did I ever do to you?!" He paused, and laughed stupidly. "Other than try to kill you. Repeatedly. But... that wasn't my fault! They told me to!" He stared down into the emptiness. "But you had a choice, Riku." He groaned. "You could have said no, you could have just stopped, left it alone, gone home with Kairi... But I didn't want only Kairi! I wanted Sora! I.... I need Sora." He let his arms loose, floating in the nothingness. He wondered for just a second how he was still breathing; he felt like he was in deep space. Eyes roving still, he noticed something floating many yards away, small but distinct. He willed himself towards it. He realized what it was; the blank book Mickey had given him. He hadn't even looked at it until now. There was a gold imprint on the front; "Book Of Dreams". Riku rose an eyebrow. "Stupid. Overdone. Oh, well... nothing better to do." He bit the end of this index finger, let a little blood slide to the tip of his fingernail, and flipped the book open. "If this is a book of dreams, then it's only suitable I write down my dreams in it." He began to write on the first page; barely thinking about it, writing the first thing that came into his head.

"All I had, all I wanted, is what I dream of. I see Sora and myself. I want to go home. I would give anything to be home right now."

He was about to write more, but suddenly, the book closed on his fingers. "OW! Son of a-" He tried to open it, but it remained closed. "Great. A mind of its own. Was my dream not good enough?" He pocketed the book, and continued to drift in emptiness. He looked around again. The flickering stars seemed closer, he felt like he could touch one. He tried it, and found he could somewhat hold it. It was nothingness lit up, it seemed. Pure white, and beautiful, he held it close to his face. "If this is my world, then I name whatever I find in it. I name this 'hope'." He cast it out of his hands. The tiny light flew away, collecting other lights with it, and flying up. Curious, Riku willed himself to follow them. He saw all the lights forming a great structure, and there was distinctly something inside. Riku flew up and close to see what they concealed. It was exactly what he prayed it would be. Sora lay asleep within them. He reached into them, and touched Sora's face. He was cold. His skin was as light as snow, his expression empty, haunting like a doll's, yet he looked like an angel to Riku. Riku plunged into the lights, and pulled Sora out. The lights dispelled, leaving only more darkness. Yet, now, there was the warmth that Riku felt when he held Sora to his chest. It was though his heart hadn't been beating, but now it throbbed.

"Did I do this to you, Sora? Is it my fault? If so... then I'm sorry!" He held Sora tighter, embracing his lifeless figure to him. "I don't know what's wrong with you, but I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

"Was that so hard?" A voice whispered from nowhere. Riku looked around. There was definitely no reasonable explanation for everything that had happened to him since that fateful night when his world was torn apart, so there was nothing for this either. He knew, as much as he hated it, it'd be easier for him to just answer the disembodied voice.

"No. I was waiting for a chance to say that to him... Now, who are you, where am I, and what are you doing?"

"For a prisoner of darkness, you certainly are presumptuous." The voice laughed. "Let's just say..." The voice changed to Sora's. "I'm a friend."

"How descriptive... I give up. What are you going to do?" Riku sighed.

"Grant your dreams as they are." Sora's voice responded. "The second step to my perfect circle." Riku saw a flash in his head of Sora smiling, of the home he'd loved, but left. "Come on. Destiny Islands waits for no one..."

"Sora, even for you, that was dumb." Riku laughed.

"Too bad I'm not Sora... and nor is what you so desperately cling to in your arms." Riku suddenly got the dreaded falling sensation, and didn't have time to calculate what the voice had said or what it meant, or even, really, to scream.

He couldn't see where he was falling or how far the fall was, but he was falling fast, still holding Sora tight. His grip on Sora slipped a little, and he grabbed Sora's hands tight. It was like a fall down the rabbit hole, with what he hoped was the same wonderland he remembered so vividly below. He finally landed- on his knees, with heavy impact- on rock solid ground. "Oooow...." He groaned, catching his breath. After a moment, Riku rose, and looked around. He was shocked to see nothing but a wasteland with a similar landscape to Destiny Islands, except the great mountain was collapsed in, overflowing with blackness, pure dark energy.

"Welcome home, Riku." The voice from above whispered in a harsh tone. The voice was nothing Riku had ever heard before; it was like pure malice, pure hatred, in a thread of words. "Welcome home."

TO BE CONTINUED...


	3. The Old Places

Awaken

A/N: This fic may not be updated very fast from this point forth. School is starting/has started on the 31st (I'm writing this from the 29th). I'm starting the 11th grade, which is a very important year for the high school career, and I can't afford to slip up (especially after my poor performance in Geometry last year!). Good thing is; I am taking a Writing Comp. course, which will hopefully improve my skills/vocabulary to better your reading experience. Also, if you get lucky/I have non-computer spare time, I just might do some art for this fic. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: Applies from Chapter 1 forth.

Chapter 3: The Old Places

Riku stared around, horrified. He almost dropped Sora in absolute and pure shock, as he gazed upon the remains of his home, the home he hadn't seen in months. It was just as cold as the void he'd been in before, but with stronger winds literally whipping across the dead grass and his tendered, weak skin. As the fierce gale struck him, striking like the Seven Sisters waves, each amplifying the next, Riku decided that neither he nor Sora, who looked thinner and weaker than Riku remembered, were safe in the open. He began to jog, against the tempest, towards the nearest structure still standing, one that he could barely make out, let alone recognize, through what seemed to be a forming sandstorm.

As he roamed, Riku began to look around more, to see if he could recognize anything. He could see the docks, where the boats had once been docked. In his head, he envisioned it, and saw it in his open eyes for a split second, saw when the water was clean and blue, the sand dry and white, the sky clear and cloudless. The view went back; a broken dock, smashed, destroyed, the waters crashing roughly against the beach black like the sunless sky above, and the sand darkened, stained by the oily substance that made up the Heartless. Riku frowned at his observation, and kicked some of the sand. What he uncovered caused him to jump back in awe, lose his balance, and unintentionally drop Sora at his feet; Heartless. Thousands, crawling under their feet, under the sand. Riku's jaw fell open, appalled, he started shaking all over at the sheer sight of the creatures. They burst up from the sand in great fountains, taking a thousand different forms. Riku watched, immobilized by astonishment, as they fell towards their target; the unconcious Sora.

"No! Stay the hell away!" Riku yelled, batting at them uselessly. They were unabashed at his futile attempt to defend Sora. They continued to rain around Sora, moving in to destroy him at last. Desperate, Riku threw his body over Sora's, yet Riku could hear them still coming. Riku closed his eyes weakly, dragging Sora in towards his chest, as the Heartless crawled closer.

"Stand and fight, Riku." A voice under Riku whispered. Riku forced himself to look down for it. Sora's eyes were wide open, staring at him. Through layers of windswept sand, Sora looked up at him, awake again. The pupils were faded, but his eyes still the bright, glimmering blue they always were. Sora smiled weakly, coming off as looking like a corpse forced to smile in the coffin. "Don't you remember? You always stood up for me. Stand." Riku held Sora tighter to him.

"I can't leave you here. I'm not going to leave you here." Riku whispered.

"And I'm not letting you die." Sora grabbed Riku's face with a trembling hand. "Stand and fight!" Riku frowned nervously, stroking Sora's hand, knowing there was no time to think, and leapt to his feet. Not looking back at Sora, he stomped on some of the smaller Heartless, effectively crushing them. He then ripped a board off the dock, and swung wildly, desperately, at the larger ones. They broke easily at his rough swings; his body was reduced to pure muscle after so many battles and so little to eat. Finally, with enough set aback, Riku swept Sora from the ground and ran, ignoring the searing winds. Sora seemed unconcious again, but his breathing was labored for some reason. Riku finally found the cave where he, Sora, and Kairi had spent much of their childhood drawing on the walls, and dodged inside it.

He lay Sora on the rocky ground, and listened to his breathing. He realized that there was sand in Sora's nose and mouth. Riku sighed nervously, wishing he knew CPR. He quickly decided to go on what he'd seen done before, and rested his mouth on Sora's, blowing oxygen into his lungs. Sora coughed weakly, sand flying from his nostrils, and went back to his comatose state. Riku sighed tiredly. He instinctively rested his lips on Sora's again, but quickly drew back, wondering why he'd done it. Sora's lips were strangely smooth, but Riku couldn't find any reason for him to kiss them. After all, Sora was in love with Kairi, and Riku knew it well. Murring confusedly, Riku ran back out into the flood of Heartless, grabbed more boards off the dock, and blocked off the door to the cave. The cave was dank and inhospitable, but Riku couldn't think of anywhere better. The homes were probably all destroyed and worn to the ground, and there was nothing else. Riku looked around, and noticed the door before him; the keyhole to the planet. Riku backed away from it, scared that he'd be caught in it again. There was no way out of the cave, and almost nowhere to more, and whoever had intended for Riku to be trapped here had succeeded brilliantly.

As Riku stared around at all the drawings on the walls, he began to think. What had happened to the innocent happiness that filled them as children? He, Kairi, Sora were the closest of friends. They had run of the island, the happiest children there were. They climbed the trees, just to see a little higher, a little more of what was around them. They explored every nook and cranny of the island, leaving their mark wherever it could be left. Three Musketeers, three amigos, the world was theirs. Why had their curiosity led to their downfall? What had pervaded their happiness? Why were the old places no longer pleasing? Where was their paradise now? Riku peered outside again, looking at the island in all it's bleakness. He knew what had happened; someone out there decided that happiness was too good for humanity. The old places, the places where he'd been happy, were dead.

TO BE CONTINUED....


	4. Heaven On Their Minds

Awaken

Disclaimer: If you recognize it from the game, it is not mine. If you don't recognize it, it's probably mine. This will be reverting from a first person to third person, so don't flame me over it.

_My mind is clearer now_

_At last, all too well, I can see_

_Where we all soon will be_

_If you strip away_

_The myth from the man, you will see_

_Where we all soon will be..._

- Heaven On Their Minds (Jesus Christ Superstar)

Chapter 4: Heaven On Their Minds

Dark, the terrible, terrible dark. He was no better off than when he'd started. Sora had gone from unconcious to groggy. He was breathing audibly, and seemed to mumble sometimes. Riku was amusing himself by drawing on the walls, as somehow, there was just enough light, a light coming from nowhere, to allowed Riku to see. There was nothing else. His sketching fingers shook, scratching out a drawomg of himself on the wall, holding the Paopu fruit. The sound of the Heartless rushing past the door in a great hurricane wasn't dying down, only growing stronger. He couldn't sleep, not now, and the air seemed to be strangling him slowly. He'd already given Sora his shirt to use as a blanket, as Sora had been shivering heavily. Now, Riku was the one shivering, but he didn't have the heart to take his shirt back. He sighed as he finished his drawing; offering the fruit to Sora. Somber, he closed his eyes and forced himself to rest. His hand slid across the skin of Sora's wrist as he lay down, resting his head on a rock. It felt like silk, unblemished and untarnished, smooth and tender. As Riku forced himself to sleep, Sora was awakening.

POV SWITCH: SORA

And... it's cold. Not a pleasant way to wake up. Very cold. Yet I have two shirts. Who's shirt do I have? Whoever they are, I'll thank them when I- oh. Riku. Yup, time to give him his shirt back. "Here ya go, buddy." I tucked it into his hand, which is clasped against his chest. His bare naked chest. Wow. He's got nice abs, I never noticed. He was always tougher than me.

Now, to get my bearings. This cave is where the Final Door was. And judging from the sounds outside, the island is still in ruins.... but I thought that I fixed that! Damn it!

Chill, chill Sora... I'm already cold, not much more chilling I can do... Chiiiiiilllll.... Think.

Nope. Too cold to think. Alright, recklessly take action. What would Riku do? ... Well, since I can't get hurt, because I know my capabilities, it won't hurt to go through a.... let's look out the door here, a veritable tidal wave of Heartless, find a house or something, and get blankets. Then, I figure a way out of here.

"Riku, wanna come with me?" He's asleep. Poor Riku. He looks so sick. I don't want to leave, but he looks so cold, I have to do something! "I'll be back, I promise...." I whisper in his ear. He looks like a china doll, his skin so pale, his lips so pink, and the strange glow that came from something in my pants pocket.

Light! It's light! I quickly dug through my pocket, and found a small keychain with a white heart on the end. It glows with a strange, unearthly light. I grinned. This was a good omen. I hung the chain over Riku's head by a notch on the wall. He'll be happy to see some light when he's awake. Now, I whisper adieu to this, for now, I have to go back into the dark.

So, so dark.

Why is my head spinning? What is this smell? Why do I feel this tug on my hands?

POV SWITCH: RIKU

Riku jumped awake, to watch Sora fall from the threshold. He dove forward enough to catch him. He dragged down, laying Sora out carefully, with his head on Riku's shirt, which Riku had found pressed to his heart. He rubbed at his own head to get the eerie, fuzzy feeling out. He'd woken with a buzzing in the back of his head, and in the jolt of seeing Sora fall, he'd ignored it for a moment. Now, the buzz continued. Riku sighed, laying back. He noticed a tiny lantern hung above him, but disregarded it; he'd probably seen it before and never noted it. Now that it was so dark, he could note it.

"Talk to me, Sora," he sighed, "Tell me, what is the perfect circle? Step one... you pushed me into the Heartless. Step two... we ended up here... What's step three, Sora?" Suddenly, the keychain fell into Riku's lap. Riku stared at it, frowning. "Hm...?" He examined it carefully and closely. No odd smell, no obvious evil emanation, no sound emitted. The sounds in his head had faded the moment the trinket had fallen, which seemed a good omen to Riku. Just then, an idea burst into his mind.

Slowly, carefully, Riku rose and walked out of the cave, keychain in hand. The Heartless, which had been surging and thrashing at the cave's walls still, suddenly subdued to the bright glow. Strange sparklings began to float from the heart charm. "Hope..." Riku whispered, recognizing them as the tiny white lights which had suspended Sora. The Heartless backed away slowly. "They're nothingnesses of evil. This is nothingness of good," he muttered to himself, explaining to himself, "Good negates evil, and if one touches the other, they both vanish..." He watched as more of the tiny white lights emerged, and took form, scattering the Heartless. The creatures, great and small, vanished under the sand again, and the ground became a complete field of tiny white dots. Suddenly, Riku noticed Sora standing at the opposite end of the field.

POV SWITCH: SORA

Riku, what are you doing? Stop, stop! This isn't how it was meant! How can it be me when I'm still asleep? Stop it, Riku!

POV SWITCH: RIKU

Staggering, Riku began to move towards Sora, his legs quivering. Sora stood still, simply smiling. The white dots began to hover around his head, almost like a halo for Riku's image of an angel.

POV SWITCH: SORA

Stop! Stop! Stop! What wolf in lamb's skin you are! Deception, you're dragging Riku to his own insanity! Hehe, I sound cool, I should read more Dante... But as I was saying, you liar! Cast off your halo and show me your horns! Get off of me, I'm not a puppet! Let me help him!

POV SWITCH: RIKU

Riku collapsed at the feet of his Sora. His mind felt cloudy now, and the buzzing had returned, worse than ever. He stared up, his vision swimming, at his halo-ringed one. "S-Sora..." He whispered, wrapping his arms around Sora's knees. Sora unhesitantly rested a hand on Riku's head, patting it, ruffling his hair affectionately. Riku couldn't help but feel like a good puppy. Sora knelt to him, wrapping his arms around his neck in a tender embrace.

"What is a Sora?" Sora inquired delicately, causing Riku's heart to chill in fright. "What is a Sora, what does it look like? Can it be held, can it be touched, can it be cooked and eaten, and if so, what would it taste like? I am not a Sora. I think you lost your Sora."

"N-no! Sora! You're Sora! You look like Sora! You must be...!"

"I am not a Sora. I'm just step three." Sora's voice slowly morphed through the sentence, and the image stretched and contorted into that of a tall creature unfamiliar to Riku. It was cloaked entirely in black, with no visible determinable features. Riku felt a jolt through his heart, and the pain nearly tore him skin from bone, cutting through the heart. Riku fell to his hands, staring at this new creature.

"Who are you?"

"I am... Well, let's let you figure it out." This was neither male nor female by voice, cold and empty, devoid of determinable emotion. If it had to be named, the tone was of sarcasm and superiority. "To simplify, call me Eiya." Tiny black dots began to float around Eiya's head, and in front of it, converged and formed a smirking face. "Say goodnight." The black mass flew at Riku's head, and filled Riku's mind.

POV SWITCH: SORA

Riku! Riku! I can hear him scream through silence! RIKU! Why can't I move? Am I just.... a puppet?

TO BE CONTINUED...


	5. Dreamscape

Awaken

Chapter 5: Dreamscape

Sora and Riku stared at eachother in the dead light of an empty world. Sora could see, even from a distance, how empty Riku's eyes were. Riku could look at Sora, see how weak he was, how his body shivered.

"P-please..." Riku heard Sora whisper. "Come... come to me...." Sora held a hand out towards Riku.

".... I....." Riku's voice was dull and blank. He could muster no substance to whisper a response. All that sat in his head was blankness. Shaking, Riku lifted a hand. Sora beckoned him forth.

"Come here, Riku..." Sora's soft voice whispered in Riku's head, but his lips didn't move. Somehow, Riku couldn't connect these. He saw Sora, he heard Sora, all there was was Sora. Tiny black strings dangled around Sora's wrists and ankles, and one lifted to move his leg, and he took a step forward. "Take my hand. Take my hand, Riku..." Deliberate, Riku took a jerky step towards Sora. Another step. There was no thought to it. Sora, Sora, all there was in his mind was Sora, to him, all there ever was, Sora, all that would ever be, Sora. Each step was forgotten, and if Riku had to go back, he would have no idea where to go, because there was no Sora there. His feet misbalanced on themselves, and Riku hit a sense of vertigo as he fell. Something broke his fall, but Riku couldn't see anything other than the Sora in front of him, his hand still extended. Sora stepped towards him, still walked by the strings, and whispered in that ominous way, into a dead-eyed Riku's ear;

"Step four."

Sora shook Riku nervously. The tiny keychain was suspended in midair somehow , making a circle of light around them. All Sora knew was that he watched Riku fall to the ground, and suddenly was there, and caught him. He was completely confused, and wouldn't have been surprised if Riku was as well. But Riku wasn't anything; he was nothing other than asleep. Slowly, Sora stroked Riku's hair, pressing Riku's head into his lap. Riku's eyes were open; he looked like a porcelain doll, with his high cheekbones and delicate face, and those wide, electric blue eyes that stunned you when you looked into them. His hair was like a pile of the feathers of angels. Pressing his nose into Riku's chest, Sora smelled blood, sweat, and some eerie, lingering sweetness undertoned in his body, something Sora couldn't recognize. Riku's eyes suddenly closed. "Aah! Riku!" Sora began to throttle him, panicking.

"S... S... o.... r... a....?" Riku mumbled, slowly, detachedly, as though he'd been set in stone for years and his lips were still regaining their movement. He quickly plunged himself into Sora's arms. "Sora. Sora. Sora. Sora." He kept mumbling Sora's name over and over. Slowly, in complete confusion, Sora patted Riku on the head, ruffling his feathery silver hair.

"Yeah, I'm here," he chuckled lightly. "We're both here. It's going to be okay." He looked carefully into Riku's eyes, and noticed that his pupils were wide, and devoid of conciousness. "What...? What's wrong with you? Riku...?"

"He has no mind," whispered a voice behind them, cold and cruel; Eiya. "He's empty. He can't think of anything."

"Sora. Sora. Sora. Sora." Riku kept whispering, over and over. Sora blinked, then smirked in his mind, or he would if he could. He was far too nervous to do so, but a small smile crept across his face. Sora was a thought, wasn't it? Or was it onlya memory?Perhaps, if it set Eiya off enough...

"No way! He knows my name! He can say it!" Sora cried, jumping up.

"Huh?!" Eiya snarled, obviously surprised.

"Sora. Sora. Sora." Riku, devoid of a Sora to clutch onto desperately, began to hug himself, huddling in the stereotypical rocking motion.

"How...? Feh! A minor flaw! This perfect circle shall be completed! Look at your wrists! You're... you're a puppet!" Sora suddenly found himself lifted up into the air, and felt strings around his wrists, binding and tightening.

"What in the hell?!" Sora gasped, and screamed as the black thread constricted his wrists.

"Dance, little puppet, dance." Eiya hissed, and Sora's arms and legs began to move without Sora's say. Sora screamed, as dreadful pain shot throughout him. "Oh, you like the control hex? I thought it was a nice touch, myself. The longer my strings remain around you, my puppet, the further in my power you will be..." Sora froze, considering this notion.

"That... doesn't matter...." Sora growled. "As long as you don't have Riku!" He forced his mind through the strings, pushing at Eiya, trying to force it away from Riku. Riku suddenly jumped up, eyes in alacrity, ready to stand for his Sora.

"Nor does what you just did. I have what I want from you two!" Eiya growled. The strings around Sora's body vanished, and he dropped to the ground. Riku caught him effortlessly.

They froze for a second, for a butterfly's flittering wing to flap, for a raindrop to fall, simply staring at each other. Riku could see the shimmering azure sparkle of water in Sora's eyes. His hair was soft and smooth, like silk against Riku's hands. He felt warm, soft, and tender, the muscles tense. His body was awkward and oddly positioned as Riku held him, but as Riku stared at him, at his entire body, his slender legs, his tight waist, his girlish face, he felt an eerie sensation, a feeling that confused him yet aroused him. Sora stared back, at the soft, kind expression on Riku's face, his eyes half-closed, a small smile on his face. He looked more beautiful than when he was asleep, with a rose-red tinge to his ivory cheeks. His arms were so strong, so thick, his chest so hard and defined. Slicks of his hair fell across his eyes now, glittering in the light like silver under a full moon. His lips were still as soft and pink as the sky at sunset. Slowly, Sora leaned forward, resting his lips on Riku's for a soft kiss. He pulled his legs around Riku's hips, and Riku shifted his hands to hold him around the waist, returning Sora's affection. As they pressed lip to lip, Riku thrust his tongue into Sora's mouth. Sora tasted sweet, and it was a familiar flavor. It tasted like the strange, sweet fruit that had once grown on the island, every thought rushed back into Riku's mind. Riku pulled Sora from his lips, and onto his back.

"Riku, what're you-" Sora asked, but he was cut off by the sudden jolting of Riku breaking into a run.

"Sora, do you remember the Paopu fruit you chased me for?"

"Yeah?"

"I know where it is. I want to get it!"

"R-Riku!" Sora flushed.

"I've... I've always wanted to give it to you, Sora. You're my best friend. I don't ever want to lose you. The Paopu fruit binds the souls unbreakably, and the Fates themselves would bow at this bind. To live and die together, Sora, it's all I've ever wanted from you." Riku barely noticed the keychain floating over them, following them. He stopped as he reached a memorized place, where he knew he'd hidden it. Riku felt his entire heart drop deep into his stomach, and he fell to his knees. The rock he'd hidden it behind was gone, and the cave emptied out completely. Sora watched as Riku stared at it, eyes wide, paling each second.

"Riku.... it's okay...." Sora assured him, in an unsure voice. "We're.... we're together as it is."

"But.... b-but...." Riku began to stutter, and swayed from side to side as though tired. Suddenly, he fell flat onto the side of his face, eyes wide, pupils shrunken, entire body tense. "RIKU!" Sora screamed.

"I gave him, mind, body, and soul, your soul and mind.... I put you in my realm... I grabbed his mind.... I put your soul on strings.... and now.... I steal away his mind completely." Sora whirled around at the sound of Riku's voice, and saw a mirror of himself, colorless, but wearing an uncharacteristic smirk. "The only trick here is your soul, little Sora. The circle will complete. Initiate step six; your souls."

TO BE CONTINUED...


	6. Fears For Stars

Awaken

Author's Notes: I first must apologize for the slowness in updates. I've been extremely distracted lately due to personal issues in my life. Before I begin this chapter, I first wish to send my condolences to those who's family members have suffered in the recent tsunami. I encourage all of my readers to contribute in some way. I, myself, will be giving blood and I assisted with my school's drive to collect funds to send (Me makey purdy bracelet! ) . With that note of solemnity over, on to.... uhm.... more angst, drama, and Riku/Sora romance. Disclaimer still applies.

Chapter 6: Fears For Stars

_Oh holy man, when you return_

_How will you heal my heart, it burns, it's_

_Full of him, it's full of me_

_Please bring my baby back to me_

("Martyr's Tune", Mascott)

Riku had felt himself go numb at seeing his prize slip away from him, his Sora falling into the emptiness of the cave with the Paopu. He'd passed out at the eerie sensation of a shock. He was paralyzed, his body frozen on the cold, damp ground. He could barely feel the Heartless writhe under the sand, but as all the feeling returned to him, he felt a blast across his nerves of writhing worms, and screamed as he realized he was sinking in. He managed to jump to his feet, seeing Sora whirl around at his scream. Sora clutched weakly onto Riku, whispering in a desperate, shaking voice;

"She wants our souls."

"No, I already have yours, Sora." Eiya groaned, using its own emotionless, genderless, indistinct voice. "I want Riku's."

"You said souls." Sora argued.

"Well.... uh.... yes..." Eiya stuttered, shuffling its feet.

"You don't have Sora's soul." Riku growled suddenly. "I do." At this, he grabbed the tiny, glowing keychain from the air, where it hovered still over them. "This is Sora's soul in essence!" Riku claimed, his voice echoing across the skies. "This is hope!"

"Hope, Riku...?" Sora blinked.

"Sora.... it makes sense..." Riku whispered, half-crazed, half-genius, and cradled Sora to his chest. "I chased after you, because you were the only hope I ever had in that terrible, black, dark place. And you're hope to me, and since this is my mind Eiya uses, within and without, your soul is, in this realm, Hope itself. Do you follow?"

"Y-yes, Riku, I follow. Now, you're scaring me." Sora whispered, as Riku pressed Sora's face to his chest. Riku released Hope back into the air.

"So, she's not getting your soul... not so long as I stand!" At that second, Riku pushed Sora down into the sand and flew fiercely at Eiya. From somewhere in that heart-driven boy came the reckless, uninhibited violence fit from only a madman. He screamed out in lunacy, as he forced himself through the mirror of Sora. Eiya cackled, as he flew right through it, crashing onto the ground. It lost its form, and vanished.

"Is that how you wish it? I'll let you play your battle out, little boy. Try battling your own mind!" Eiya screeched, its voice echoing over the island. Riku shuddered on the ground for a moment, catching his breath, before standing straight up. His spine was shaking, his entire body quivering. Something was wrong, Riku knew now. There was something in his mind he didn't want. A flash before his eyes; he lay Sora's body on a funeral pyre. Sora's eyes, full of blood and pain. Screaming filled his ears. Riku felt only pain, and as he kept seeing these terrible things, these horrible screams echoing through his ears, it all came from that which gave his heart light and hope. He turned to Sora.

"I have to get you out of here." Riku breathed. "It's not safe for you."

"Riku, what do-" Sora was completely confused, but not as confused as when Riku began to speak almost rhythmically.

"I've seen it all, I've seen the dark, I've seen the brightness in every last spark, I've seen what I chose, I've seen what I need, I've seen enough to know there's no more to see..." Riku covered his face, but Sora had already seen his cheeks wet.

"The one you love?" Sora questioned, his voice trembling. "The home you will share?"

"To be fully honest, I don't fucking care!" Riku screamed, tears streaming down his face. Blackness surrounded Riku's vision, and he closed his eyes.

Sora felt everything grow dark, and a fissure formed between them, the ground breaking, and crumbling under Riku's feet. It was the exact same way that he'd lost Kairi. "RIKU!" Sora screamed, stretching a hand out towards Riku. His cowardice wouldn't separate them. "RIKU! THE PAOPU!"

"Paopu..." Riku murmured. It burned through his mind. He saw him holding it, offering it to Sora, then snatching it away, as Sora cried... "STOP IT! I DON'T WANT TO SEE IT!"

"Riku! It's ours to share! It's ours! Reach for it, grab it!" Sora cried, trying to reach Riku across the broken beach. Riku held out a hand.

"Give it to me, I'll break it."

"Riku... Hope...." Sora hissed. "It's... It's Eiya's mind in yours! It's all Eiya! Push it out, it's still in your mind, it's still your battle!" Sora held out his hand, and found, suddenly, the Paopu in his hand. "What....?" Sora thought. Sora was hope to Riku, and up until now, Eiya was using Riku's mind. If Sora was still hope, then he held hope within him. He tossed the Paopu into Riku's hand, and suddenly found himself holding Riku's hand. Riku opened his eyes.

"You." Riku whispered, eyes wide. The darkness subsided, and the beach became exactly as it was before; still dark, still full of evil, with rain pouring down and cold, empty winds blowing across it. They held the Paopu, hand in hand.

"Riku, Eiya's got its own fantasies in its mind. That's all." Sora smiled, mumbling softly, but looking Riku directly in the eyes. Riku felt warmth from Sora's deep blue eyes, and felt a compelling urge for him, forgetting the terrible images. His voice, that sweet, innocent tone, spoke through Riku's mind, reassuring him, "Look, see, Riku? I'm right here. No matter what Eiya showed you, I'm always right here." The light of Hope floated above them still, growing brighter and brighter. Riku let go of the Paopu. Sora looked between the fruit and Riku, and slowly took a bite off the edge farthest from the leaf, and offered it back to Riku, swallowing heavily. "It's sweet."

Riku took a bite out of it. "It's.... bittersweet." He murmured, through a full mouth, and swallowed. Sora giggled softly, his voice heavy, almost thick, to Riku's ears.

"I guess that means that we're together." Sora whispered softly, pressing his chest to Riku's. Riku instinctively wrapped his arms around Sora.

"Minds, bodies, souls, all are as one."

"All is full of love, Riku." Sora purred, looking up at Riku, his eyes glimmering. Hope's light grew brighter, as Sora kissed Riku again, lips and tongues meeting in mutual affection and caring. They fell to the ground, sprawled across each other, but bound, even if for only that moment, in purity and love.

Eiya watched them combine.

TO BE CONTINUED...

End Note: SUPER SECRET DELETED SCENE!

Due to FFN's child-friendly rules, I am not allowed to post certain material that was originally to be included in this story. The aforementioned scene contains graphic description and action that would merit an NC-17 rating. However, I have kept the scene in my personal files. If you would like to read it, thus enjoying the full effect of the end of this chapter, please e-mail me at . I will e-mail it to you, as long as you include the answer to a trivia question that I will post under this note and a confirmation that you are old enough to view this material. DO NOT REPORT ME FOR VIOLATING THE SITE RULES. I WILL NOT BE POSTING IT ON FFN, AND THERE ARE NO RULES SAYING THAT I CANNOT DISTRIBUTE IT OFF OF FFN TO CONSENTING READERS ABOVE 17.

At the beginning of Chapter 4, the lyrics for the chapter came from a musical. Name another song from this musical.


	7. Where Is The Line?

Awaken

Author's Notes: Welcome back to everyone's favorite mindfuck fanfiction! You may have noticed the rating jump. There is only one reason for this little jolt; "fuck" is now fair play. If a character says "fuck", then some little twelve-year old who likes tattling to Xiang will see it, and screech "OMFG SHE SED FUK OMGLOL REPORT!" and I'd probably get banned with only a PG-rating on the story. You don't want to see me banned, do you?

That's not the only reason I'm making this little announcement, however. I'm also thanking my reviewers for sticking with me. I would like to thank East Kaioshin, my dear friend Kagirinai Hana (Hi Charlotte!), clueless97, AnimeFan-Artemis, fuzzish, Smiley-chan, and BJ4. I love you all, and thank you for your support of my crap.

With this said, on with the show! (Disclaimer still applies!)

Chapter 7: Where Is The Line?

_Let's talk and we'll fill the air_

_With imagery that lasts forever_

_So this is love, yeah, that's a lovely thought_

_You have to care for it to keep it together_

_And if you fall, we get up_

_You're stuck in a dream, we'll wake up_

_If you fall in love, will you hold onto it?_

("If You Fall", Azure Rays)

Riku and Sora were carefully trying to redress. Sora couldn't quite find his overshirt, and Riku's shirt was going out with the raging tide. After managing to catch them, they sat on an island around where the waves rushed, back to back, staring out into different directions.

"How do we get out of here?" Riku sighed.

"I dunno, Riku. I don't think we have any hopes of escape." Sora mumbled, resting his head on his folded arms, looking down between his knees. Riku frowned, glaring out towards the mess of his home island. He could tell that it was nearly sunset. He thought carefully, and remembered that he'd arrived at about midnight, and it had been pitch black. He closed his eyes, bringing himself back to the moment. A fall down the rabbit hole. He'd been holding Sora's hands, and his body had been pulling up, resisting the fall. It seemed that the void had been trying to pull Sora up. And the Hope keychain had still been in Sora's pants pocket. Hope!

"Sora, I think that I know how you can get out of here."

"We can get out? How?"

"Not we, you." Riku whispered. "Just you. You don't belong here, this is meant to be my hell. The Hope is your way out, and I'll show you to it-"

"I'm not going without you, Riku." Sora growled.

"You have to. I asked for this, so I have to stay here." Riku glared at the ground. "At midnight- which is when we got here-, I'm going to get you out of here. You're the one the Keyblade chose, and it's important that you go out there... the world might need a Keyblade Master again."

"But Riku-"

"No buts." There were a few minutes of silence, until Riku finally asked, in a diminuitive voice, "Wanna go play in the cave?" Sora stared at Riku for a moment, shocked that he could think about their childhood right now, before responding.

"Yeah, sure." They both got up, and walked back towards the cave. Hope still hung over them, shining brightly. Sora watched it, letting it glimmer across his eyes. Riku looked over, watching his azure eyes fill with light. It was silence, but a moment of detached warmth.

The rocks always made perfect chalk, and now that Riku was looking for it, he noticed a long stone right where Sora had been laid down. Right above it was a drawing of Kairi and Sora exchanging Paopu fruit. Riku eyed Sora, who was sketching a cricket on the wall, deviously, then began to smear at the drawing of Kairi, trying to wipe it away frustratedly. Sora paused in his drawing to watch.

"The chalk's kinda permanent on this wall." He chuckled. "Good luck." Sora grabbed a larger piece of chalk, went to the wall where the Final Door had been, and began to draw. As Riku continued scraping at the drawing of Kairi, hissing like an angry cat, he noticed Sora humming to himself softly. He looked over at what Sora was drawing. It was a perfect image, much better than the drawing of Sora and Kairi done four years ago, and showed Riku hugging Sora around the neck, with the half-eaten Paopu fruit in his hands. Riku blinked, and stood next to Sora. Carefully, he drew the smile on his face slightly wider. Sora drew falling leaves around them. Together, they examined their work.

"I like this one better." Riku chuckled.

"I definitely agree, Riku." Sora sighed, laying back towards Riku. Riku caught him in his arms, and they positioned themselves the way they were in the drawing. "I wish you could hold me like this longer."

"I won't let you go..." Riku mumbled, holding him close, pressing his nose into Sora's soft, silky hair.

"I'll let you go." A voice cackled behind them. Both of them whirled around, to see Eiya's form behind them. It moved closer to them, its translucent form reaching for Sora and Riku.

"No." Riku growled, stepping between Eiya and Sora. There was a tense moment, as Riku eyed the path out. Eiya and Sora both watched him, waiting for his gambit. In a flash, Riku scooped Sora up and leapt through Eiya. "Sora, get over there!" Riku cried setting Sora down, as Eiya chased after them. "Hide!"

"I'm not scared!"

"I'm scared for your life. Go!" Riku urged Sora, pushing him into the corner. Sora stared at Riku as he cowered.

"R-Riku..." He whimpered, as he saw something new come from Riku; it was as though Ansem was back. Riku had his fists forward, absent of a sword to defend himself with, and this crazed, wild look flooded his electric blue eyes, making them nearly spark in the dead air of the cave.

"I can taste the bittersweet bond between your souls." Eiya hissed. "I can taste it in the air. I can smell it on your clothes. You idiot..." She cackled. "Do you really think that bond can keep me from tearing you apart?" A dark force pushed at them both, a great wind filling the air, tearing at them violently. Riku stepped in front of Sora, and crossed his arms to brace himself from the wind.

"You... can't... tear us!" Riku cried, pushing his arms out, breaking the wind. "Sora and I are a part of each other's hearts! As long as we have that much, we won't break!" He paused, then turned around to look at Sora. "Right?"

Sora blinked, chuckled, and smiled. "Yeah. Exactly right. Just like my heart and Kairi's are one, my heart and Riku's are one! As long as we protect each other, you can't touch us!"

"Wrong... since you two are connected, I can just use what I want from you without having to go between you!" Eiya cackled evilly, then reached towards Sora with what looked like a hand. Sora took the Hope keychain from his pocket and thwacked Eiya's hand back.

"Can't touch this!" Sora cackled eagerly, as the white light stung Eiya's hand. "Riku, let's go!" He dashed out of the cave, closely followed by Riku. Eiya burst after them. The ground around them erupted into Heartless, a tidal wave nearly sixty feet tall. Sora and Riku froze in place as it rose around them.

"Hold onto me!" Riku cried, clutching onto Sora, right as Sora wrapped his arms around Riku's shoulders. Swiftly, Riku bounced off the Heartless' heads, ascending to the top of the wave, almost literally surfing it onto the collapsed mountain top. Riku put Sora down, and surveyed the world around him-

Pure solid blackness. The entire island was a mass of Heartless, and they were starting to pour over the tip of the crest. Suddenly, Hope shone again, deflecting the Heartless back. Riku and Sora heard a rumbling behind them, and both whirled around to see a gigantic black form rising from within the broken, crumbled mountain.

"Eiya..." Sora whispered, as it rose higher. Riku was dumbfounded. "It's... huge..."

"Eiya..." Riku gasped suddenly. "It's going to suck us up..."

"Just like..." Sora choked on his words, turning back to Riku.

"Just like the last time we were here together." Riku finished, remembering how the great blackness had sucked him up and left Sora behind.

"SORA! COME TO ME!" Eiya shrieked maniacally.

This time, Riku would be left behind.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	8. My Way Down

Awaken

Author's Notes: (twitching and muttering, clutching cup of cocoa. Has "Space For Rent" written on her forehead in permanent marker) Sugarsugarsugarsugar... PYAAA! SUGAR! Sugar makes me HAPPY! Sugar, you are my only joy other than writing and undoing bra snaps!

... (Cough)... Uhm... on with the show!

Disclaimer still applies!

Chapter 8: My Way Down

_Valentine is done, Here but now they're gone_

_Romeo and Juliet are together in eternity (Romeo and Juliet)_

_Forty-thousand men and women every day (Like Romeo and Juliet)_

_Forty-thousand men and women every day (Really find happiness)_

_Another forty-thousand coming every day_

_We can be like they are!_

_So come on, baby- Don't fear the reaper_

_Baby take my hand- Don't fear the reaper _

_We'll be able to fly- Don't fear the reaper_

_Baby I'm your man_

("Don't Fear The Reaper"- Blue Oyster Cult. I'd put the whole song, but that'd take up too much space. Just... go listen to it.)

"COME TO ME, SORA!" Eiya screeched again, lifting a hand form. Sora's eyes widened, as the remnant of his puppet-strings were pulled at. Riku felt the strings pull at his own body through the bond shared with Sora, but not as hard as Sora felt them- a small, blue ethereal form emerged from Sora's open mouth.

"Sora, NO!" Riku gasped, as the blue form wafted into the air towards Eiya. Sora's body dropped to the ground, limp. "Let him go, Eiya! Give him back his heart!" Riku shouted. It sounded oddly familiar...

_"Whoever you are, let Riku go! Give him back his heart!"_

"My god..." Riku whispered to himself. "A perfect circle..." He turned and stared at Eiya, as it slowly took Sora's form. "If the circle goes as Eiya wants it to go, then I will trap Sora away in the depths of darkness... Fuck!" Riku gasped out loud. "No Keyblade master, nobody to stop the Heartless!"

"Very good, Riku." Sora's voice cackled over him. "You've finally figured me out. Of course," Eiya paused to giggle, "Your logic will mean nothing once your mind is mine."

"What do you want with me! You have Sora! You brought me here to torture me and to help Ansem, apparently, and you did it well! What more do you want!" Riku yelled, his voice breaking slightly, forcing down multitudes of tears gathering behind his eyes.

"It's simple... while Sora has the body strength, you have the mind, you both have the souls, and you both have the hearts. Both of you, in your own rights, are Keyblade wielders." Eiya let this sink in on Riku. "Now, the perfect Keyblade wielder would have body, mind, soul, and heart. Therefore, I take what makes you both worthy of the Keyblade, and put it upon the power Ansem wrought and lost in the darkness. The perfect Keyblade wielder... to destroy these worlds!"

"But why!" Riku begged weakly, his breaking at the knees.

"What do you mean why?" Eiya hissed nastily, taking Sora's form and voice. The wind picked up, blowing harder, whirling Heartless in midair like pieces of paper.

"Well, there are really two... why are you destroying the worlds...?" He paused to rub at his eyes. "And why do you have to tell me? Can't you just kill me and get it over with?"

"Why destroy? Because they're not worthy of existance. People running on their feelings, ignoring sensibility for those brief little bursts of emotions... Feh! Humans are ruining themselves every time a heartstring flutters towards an attractive memebr of the preferred sex. And why tell you...? Well, I don't know, really. I suppose that, since you've been so very cooperative in getting me what I want, you deserve a little explanation about what that ingenius warrior's mind will do for me."

"I won't do anything for you!" Riku yelled. "You said one word that cleared Sora and myself of everything you're doing!"

"Oh, hell..." Eiya moaned, rubbing a hand to its forehead.

"You don't have the heart to wield the Keyblade. And you can't take our hearts!" Riku asserted, pulling himself up, confident again.

"Look at you, spouting nonsense! I just took your little friend's form, body, and soul! I have his heart, and you're connected to me!" Eiya shouted.

"I have his soul, it's the hope that keeps me on my feet!" Riku cried, as he dug for the Hope keychain still in his pocket. He clutched it tight to his chest. In his mind, he found the puppet strings that bound Eiya to Sora- and to himself, in turn-, and tugged at them.

"STOP IT!" Eiya screeched, as Riku tore at Eiya with a mighty tug. The wind picked up, and the land began to rattle and rumble with the mighty forces of angry gods.

"I have his body, because it's in my mind! The mind you so desire from me, but you can't have!" He pulled again at the strings.

"I can have it! I will have it!" Eiya declared, pulling right back at the strings. Sora's true voice screamed from within Eiya, feeling the terrible pain chorus throughout his heart. "You're mine! Sora is mine!"

"I have his heart, because we share a heart! Maybe you fight to hold down emotions, but my emotion for Sora is what bound us in the first place!" Riku pulled as hard as he could. "I LOVE HIM!" With this mighty yarp, across the rooftops of the world, Sora burst out of Eiya, and the blue essence re-entered his mouth. Riku and Sora toppled over onto the rocks, as a great crack was heard from somewhere.

The circle had been broken.

Eiya screeched in what could have been pain to an emotionless remnant of pure darkness, and the Heartless shrank around them, sinking under the sand. Eiya was gone, and Riku and Sora were alone again.

Riku examined the Keychain he held to his chest, as the world around him cooled down, the wind settling, the sky clearing somewhat, the Heartless hiding, and Sora falling back into his own body. "It's the Kingdom keychain." Riku muttered. "Where'd Hope go...?" He looked around curiously, and knelt by Sora, feeling his chest. There was a faint heartbeat. Sora slowly became pale again, as pale as when Riku had first found him in the void, and, as Riku judged by his soft, even breathing, Sora was fast asleep. Riku felt eerily delirious,and put a hand to his head. He felt blood, and saw blood dripping off his head onto his shirt- he must have hit his head when he fell, he thought.Riku looked up, and saw the moon and stars out, high up in the sky- it was nearly midnight. Riku picked Sora up, resting him in his arms, and carried him towards the highest point on the island, at the top of the tallest tree. "Sora, this is my nightmare now... You have to go home." He could feel his own body trembling, as the beach faded around him. "Just remember what you've said, Sora... our hearts are one... and as long as we think of each other once in a while, we'll always have each other's strength. I think that you've already affected me... tonight was the closest I've ever come to crying." He grinned at Sora, who still slept. "Please, Sora, don't forget me now."

Destiny Island became a path in the void, and up ahead, Riku could see Hope floating in the air, drifting lazily. Blood continued to drip across his body, and he began to stumbleintermittently out of weakness and a pervading loss of balance.As he came closer, they formed a bed with a cage over it. Riku gently lay Sora down in it, and the Hope surrounded him, to keep him safe from the horrors of the void. Riku examined it. "I'll need to push you..." He muttered, looking under the cage. He could see that it was pure and empty void beneath the cage. "Well, Sora, your way up must be my way down." He stepped into the void, using his last bit of momentum to push the cage up towards the bright light shining above the void. "Wake up, Sora! Please wake up!" As the cage began to fly up, blood began to float around him, andthe Hopes suddenly gained a mind of their own. As Riku began to fall, they turned Sora around, and Riku grabbed onto the cage, pressing his hand against it, but it was as though glass separated him and Sora now. Riku pushed the cage up again, pushing himself down, and watching Sora go up. Blood clouded his vision, and Riku closed his eyes.

TO BE CONTINUED... (One more chapter!)

End Author's Notes: ... I spilled cocoa on myself... (sobble.)


	9. Sounds Reprise

Awaken

Author's Notes: NYOOOO! LAST CHAPTER! (sobble... sobble...) I'm going to miss this fic. TT I just wonder why I never got any love for it. I mean, besides my shoddy spelling and grammar on occasion, it was good... So, I encourage you, my readers, to at least leave me a review on your way out. I would like to than East Kaioshin for continually reviewing me from early on, because you rock that way. Enjoy the conclusion!

Conclusion: Sounds

_And we were done-done-done with all the_

_Fuck-fuck-fucking around_

("Black Cadillacs", Modest Mouse)

_"Wake up, Sora! Please wake up!" _

"R... Riku..."

_"Wake up, Sora! Please wake up!" _

"Riku...? I can hear you, but..."

"Wake up, Sora!" Donald quacked into Sora's ear. Sora jumped, snapping awake.

"Wha...?" Sora frowned, staring around. It was bright daylight on the path in the middle of nowhere. The grass was shimmering and green, the sky was azure and blue, dotted with fluffy white clouds. The hills rolled for miles. Goofy and Donald were both leaning over him curiously. "What happened? I just had the strangest dream!"

"Well, why doncha tell us about it?" Goofy suggested innocuously.

"I... I was back in Destiny Island, and Riku was there, and there were millions and billions of Heartless!" Sora babbled, rubbing his head to try and remember. "And... I think I ate half of a Paopu, and there was this keychain that glowed, and little white balls... Riku called them Hope, I think..." Sora's voice slowed considerably, as he began to draw blanks. "And... tug-of-war... and Ansem saying something about a perfect circle... And..." He paused. "I dunno. I don't remember much more."

"You just miss Riku, and your home." Donald clucked comfortingly. "It was just a dream."

"More like a nightmare... Hm, left a bittersweet taste in my mouth, too." Sora spit onto the ground. "Ugh." He grunted, wiping his lips. Roughly, he got to his feet. Out from the hood of his vest flew a tiny white ball. "What the-"

"Is that one'a them 'hope' things?" Goofy inquired, pointing at it.

"Yeah, looks like it... Then does that mean...?" Sora put a hand into his pocket, and found a keychain with a tiny white ball on the end of it.

"Whoa..." Goofy and Donald gasped simultaneously.

"It can't be... that was just a dream, right?" Sora laughed nervously. "Let's just leave this behind..."

"Nah, keep it. It's probably coincidence." Donald insisted. "Besides, it's pretty nice-looking."

"Alright then..." Sora clipped the keychain onto the Keyblade, which turned it into the Kingdom Key, but Sora didn't notice. "Let's go, then!" He pointed at Pluto, who was scratching his head seven yards away, and the group continued to chase Pluto.

Riku floated downward in the void, blood still dripping slowly from his head. His clothes were torn and dirty, not to mention blood-stained. His face was solid white, without even a tinge of pink. His arms were folded across his chest as though he were already in the coffinthat he was inevitably falling towards. He stared at the nonexistant sky, and weakly grasped at the blood floating around him. "Hello, little red friend..." Riku mumbled. As he unfolded his arms from his chest, a book escaped the confines of his shirt pocket. "What now...?" Carefully, he grasped it. "Book... of... dreams..." Riku read to himself, his voice becoming muddled with delirium. "I have a dream... I'm going to dream about Sora..." His fingers covered in blood, he wrote with a shaking hand; "SORA". With that, Riku lost his motor control, and the book slipped from his grasp, falling in the newfound gravity. Riku fell with it, feeling weaker every second, and the pain screaming at him.

Suddenly, Riku jumped awake. His head was heavily bandaged, and he was outside somewhere dark. It was night, and thousands of tiny stars twinkled above him. His clothes were gone, and he was wearing a black robe. His hands were covered in half-scrubbed off bloodstains. He was on a dusty path, and there seemed no end to the empty wasteland of barren green grasses and a slightly clouded sky. He noticed Mickey sitting cross-legged a few feet away, packing away a first aid kit. "Your Majesty?" Riku mumbled, his voice weak and soft.

"Oh, are you awake?" Mickey whirled to look at Riku, grinning. "When we fell outta that place, you musta had a nasty fall. Bumped your head real good, you were soaked in... well, you know." Mickey chuckled to himself. "I gotta say, you scared me when you ran off. I can't believe you just ran off into all'a them Heartless! I don't know how you survived. I don't even know how we got out."

"I went home..." Riku murmured, his voice stronger. "I saw Sora..."

"Probably delirium." Mickey assured Riku calmly.

"Sora's safe now, I was sure I got that evil dark Eiya thing down..."

"Well, if it makes you feel better." Mickey chirped, grinning. "Come on, this path has to lead somewhere, and we're going to find it. Oh, and here's your book." He handed Riku the Book of Dreams.

"This!" Riku snatched it, and opened it up. "This is how we got out..." He flipped open the book, showing Mickey what he'd written. "Sora was here."

"Well, if he was here, he's gone now. The only question is... which way he went." Mickey puzzled to himself. "This way looks good... and that way's perfectly fine..."

"He went that way." Riku asserted, pointing. "I can feel it... Sora and I... our hearts are one."

"If you say so, Riku." Mickey chuckled, and he pulled Riku to his feet. "You okay to walk?"

"Just a little shaky. Just stay beside me, please..." Riku sighed, as he leaned a hand on Mickey's shoulder. He heard a strange sound, far in the distance. "What was that?" Riku gasped.

"It's where we're going, Riku." Sora's voice sounded beside him. Riku turned, and saw Sora on the other side of him, holding his hand to keep him steady.

"Soooora..." Riku whispered to himself.

"Riku...? Uh, hello, Riku?" Mickey blinked, as Riku stared into nothingness.

"Come on, Riku, this way." Sora urged Riku, and began to run.

"Sora? Sora!" Riku shouted, as Sora vanished over the horizon. He chased after him.

"Hang on! Riku! Riku!" Mickey yelped, as Riku ran off, yelling Sora's name to an empty sky. All that was in Riku's head, at the moment, was the sound of Sora's voice, and the memory of a whispered promise;

_"Someday, let's get out of here. You and me, together!"_

FIN-

Final Author's Notes: This will all eventually be revised withbetter grammar and spelling. The meaning of some occurences within the story are open to interpretation, and I'd love to hear what you think. Leave a review for me!

PS: Possible Sequel? Hm.(continues playing Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories) We'll see...


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